Posted by James Martin, TENNIS.com
The new year is here, but it's unlikely the pros have had any time to make resolutions. After a short vacation, tennis had its version of Opening Day this week as five tournaments kicked off the new season. The women are playing in Auckland and Gold Coast, while the men headed to Doha, Chennai and Adelaide. And the Australian Open looms in less than two weeks.
But no worries, mate. My resolution is to make resolutions for some of the top players (they can e-mail me later with their kind regards). So without further ado:
Roger Federer: Resolves to stop being so damn nice. There was a time when champions snarled and sniped at their opponents, and considered carousing and cavorting as their community service. Now it's all about charity, winning graciously and giving back to the fans. Yawn.
Rest of the men's top 10: Resolves to stop being so damn deferential to Federer. Yeah, he's the best, but, as Mats Wilander might say, grow a pair already. Take that Feder-Bear and burn it.
Rafael Nadal: Resolves to eliminate one of his half-dozen or so on-court ticks, preferably the one that involves the seat of his pants before each point.
Maria Sharapova: Resolves to learn the proper finger mechanics of a fist pump before she wins her next Grand Slam, which will happen at the Australian Open this month (you heard it here first).
James Blake: Resolves to improve his 0-9 career record in five-set matches.
Andy Roddick: Resolves to do as well on the court in 2007 as he did in his 2006 fantasy football league. (For the record, he was in the playoff finals as of Christmas, headed for a showdown with his brother John.)
Nikolay Davydenko: Resolves to e-mail Scott Boras to see if the uber-agent can get the world's No. 3 player a Nike sponsorship, a Dunkin' Donuts patch, something, anything. Show the Russian some love.
Lleyton Hewitt: Resolves to find his feisty, fist-pumping demeanor, which mysteriously disappeared around the time he got hitched. Coincidence?
Nicole Vaidisova: Resolves to fulfill the hype, sharpen her mental game -- and backhand -- and win her first major.
Anna Chakvetadze: Resolves to hold a meet-and-greet press conference to tell tennis fans how this 19-year-old Moscow University student snuck into the top 15.
Justine Henin-Hardenne: Resolves to finish what she started in 2006 by remaking her game and becoming more aggressive at the net.
Kim Clijsters: Resolves to change her mind and not retire at the end of the year.
